The Great Gatsby Chapter 9 Analysis
The American Dream
The American Dream is one of the most important themes in The Great Gatsby. The success story is that hard work allows a man to become incredibly wealthy. Fitzgerald shows how the American Dream can fail in The Great Gatsby. Even though Gatsby has worked hard, he makes his money by bootlegging. His purpose is in attaining the love of Daisy, a girl whom he had a relationship before the war. The multiple people who attend Gatsby’s parties show the greedy want for wealth. As Nick explains in Chapter 9, the American Dream was originally about discovery, the pursuit of happiness, and individualism. However, in the novel, easy money and relaxed social values have corrupted this dream. The main plot shows how Gatsby's dream of …show more content…
It symbolizes our searching for a way to reach a goal, no matter how far away. “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter-tomorrow we will run faster, stretch our arms farther…. And one fine morning-” Gatsby’s goal is what gave him and purpose in life and separated him from the rest of the upper class. When Gatsby was poor, Daisy could not marry him. Therefore, he worked hard and managed to achieve the American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald credits American Dream’s destruction to privilege and a lack of humanity. Gatsby’s use of status and privilege is shown when his traffic violation if ignored by a police …show more content…
As mentioned earlier, West Egg’s people are those who have worked hard to get where they are, while East Egg’s people are those who already have the privilege. Gatsby is trying very hard to fake status: he purchases fancy shirts and claims to have attended Oxford. Ultimately, it is the meaning of class that separates Gatsby and Daisy. Daisy is drawn to Tom, who is the same class as she is. The characters in the book are distinguished by their wealth and where they live and work. The way wealth affects the social status is seen through Jay Gatsby, who uses his house, parties, and clothing to impress Daisy. Daisy married Tom due to his wealth and social status, and Gatsby tried to live up to her expectations. Social status and wealth go hand in hand and can be seen through the characters and their happiness. Myrtle Wilson lives in the Valley of Ashes and hates her life there, but idolizes the city life where she sees money and glamour. This shows the sad view on how social status affects everyone as George had devoted his life to working to make her happy, but is unable to do so and loses everything for her. Money also made certain characters careless. A perfect example of this is Tom and Daisy who, said by Nick, are “careless people” who believe that money could protect them. Also, Myrtle believed that money could improve her life, so she ended up having an affair with
The American Dream is one of the most important themes in The Great Gatsby. The success story is that hard work allows a man to become incredibly wealthy. Fitzgerald shows how the American Dream can fail in The Great Gatsby. Even though Gatsby has worked hard, he makes his money by bootlegging. His purpose is in attaining the love of Daisy, a girl whom he had a relationship before the war. The multiple people who attend Gatsby’s parties show the greedy want for wealth. As Nick explains in Chapter 9, the American Dream was originally about discovery, the pursuit of happiness, and individualism. However, in the novel, easy money and relaxed social values have corrupted this dream. The main plot shows how Gatsby's dream of …show more content…
It symbolizes our searching for a way to reach a goal, no matter how far away. “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that's no matter-tomorrow we will run faster, stretch our arms farther…. And one fine morning-” Gatsby’s goal is what gave him and purpose in life and separated him from the rest of the upper class. When Gatsby was poor, Daisy could not marry him. Therefore, he worked hard and managed to achieve the American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald credits American Dream’s destruction to privilege and a lack of humanity. Gatsby’s use of status and privilege is shown when his traffic violation if ignored by a police …show more content…
As mentioned earlier, West Egg’s people are those who have worked hard to get where they are, while East Egg’s people are those who already have the privilege. Gatsby is trying very hard to fake status: he purchases fancy shirts and claims to have attended Oxford. Ultimately, it is the meaning of class that separates Gatsby and Daisy. Daisy is drawn to Tom, who is the same class as she is. The characters in the book are distinguished by their wealth and where they live and work. The way wealth affects the social status is seen through Jay Gatsby, who uses his house, parties, and clothing to impress Daisy. Daisy married Tom due to his wealth and social status, and Gatsby tried to live up to her expectations. Social status and wealth go hand in hand and can be seen through the characters and their happiness. Myrtle Wilson lives in the Valley of Ashes and hates her life there, but idolizes the city life where she sees money and glamour. This shows the sad view on how social status affects everyone as George had devoted his life to working to make her happy, but is unable to do so and loses everything for her. Money also made certain characters careless. A perfect example of this is Tom and Daisy who, said by Nick, are “careless people” who believe that money could protect them. Also, Myrtle believed that money could improve her life, so she ended up having an affair with